


Inner Odds

by imusuallyobsessed



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/M, Farmer's Market, Felicity has a lot of thoughts, Ivy Town, everyone deserves to be happy, olicity - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-27
Updated: 2017-06-27
Packaged: 2018-11-19 22:15:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,543
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11322804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imusuallyobsessed/pseuds/imusuallyobsessed
Summary: Ivy Town seems perfect. So, why does Felicity feel this way?





	Inner Odds

**Author's Note:**

> So, this has been unfinished on my laptop for a looooooong time. The fic-a-thon prompt "at odds" finally dusted the memory of it off and encouraged me to finish.
> 
> I've always had a lot of thoughts about Felicity in Ivy Town. Especially after her true feelings about their time there was revealed. You may not agree with the way I chose to pursue this, but I've thought long and hard about this time in Felicity's life and this is how I'm choosing to portray it. Hope you enjoy!

Felicity looked around their house in Ivy Town, arms crossed as she examined every detail and tried to understand what she was feeling.

Felicity was happy. She _was_. She and Oliver were together, _happy_ , and away from Starling City.

But maybe that was the problem. Being away from Starling City.

Not that she thought they only worked when their lives were in constant danger. That wasn’t it. She loved Oliver, and she knew Oliver loved her. They’d been loving each other for far too long before anything came of it, but they were past that. Oliver and Felicity. Felicity and Oliver. They were an _us_ , a _we_ , and Felicity couldn’t be more thankful.

Except… something wasn’t quite right.

Was it the couch, so optimally placed for viewing of the television that only ever showed cooking shows, sports, or BBC America? (Not the news. Oh, so seldom the news.)

Was it the chef’s kitchen Oliver had insisted on, had fallen in love with as soon as they saw the place? He’d discovered joy in cooking during their summer away, and Felicity had thrilled at seeing him discover and truly _enjoy_ something just for the sake of the thing itself. He wasn’t cooking to survive or provide his body enough calories to keep going as the Arrow. He found joy in creation, in sharing those creations with her.

And that was extra good, because if it was up to Felicity they’d live off take-out and poptarts.

The problem definitely wasn’t the bed.

Was it the front yard, with those perfectly trimmed hedges and shrubs Oliver meticulously tamed every weekend? The flowers, riots of unexpected color, had been her idea. He’d smiled and gone to buy some the next day, intent on making their home everything they both wanted.

No… Felicity thought it was that dishware. The scalloped or dimpled debate had lasted days – and multiple trips – to the store. To Oliver, it was _vital_. These dishes were what he could cook on, serve her food on. These dishes would be the center of their life together, between them over shared meals.

Felicity couldn’t have cared less. Her level of caring was in the negatives. When he first asked, she shrugged and said _whatever you want, hon_.

He’d wanted her to contribute, but any comment she could think of was trite, cliché, and obviously not her. Oliver would’ve been able to see through them in a second. The problem was, Felicity legitimately _didn’t care_ about dishware. She ate on napkins, paper plates, and _rarely_ some mismatched Ikea dishes back in Starling. Her only prized eating-ware was her extensive mug collection. She would’ve been just as happy having Oliver serve her chicken cordon-bleu off anything.

Yes, it was those dishes. Those perfect, scalloped-edge dishes he’d chosen because, _they give a nice texture to the kitchen cabinets, don’t you think, Felicity?_

Felicity had fought so hard not to roll her eyes at that comment. It was important to Oliver, so it was important to her. At least, that’s what she kept telling herself.

Oliver was _excited_ by all this. His eyes went bright when he thought about arranging furniture and buying a microwave, having barbeques and brunches with the neighbors. The only time Felicity looked like that – aside from looking at Oliver behind closed doors, of course – was when she helped the team.

How messed up was that? She finally got to be with the man of her dreams in a cute rental house in the suburbs, and she wasn’t happy.

She was happy _with Oliver_. Just not happy with Oliver _in Ivy Town_.

Felicity hadn’t grown up like this. In her Vegas neighborhood, there was no homeowner’s association, no block parties, no sweater-vest-cloaked dads or pearl-wearing moms. She didn’t care about Bobby making fifth place in the school’s mile-run or Sally winning the second-grade spelling bee. Her life in Starling City was exciting, thrilling, and truly making a difference. In Ivy Town, she just… _was_. Yes, she was trying to wrangle Palmer Tech, but that was still easily managed from her laptop.

But Oliver deserved this peace. He wanted this… suburban wet dream, and after everything he’d been through, Felicity wanted to give it to him.

When he was with her, everything felt perfect. But as soon as he left, that restless hollowness crept in.

Currently, Oliver was with the Hoffmans at the farmers market. He’d wanted Felicity to come as well, but she had some PT work to catch up on for the coming week and… she also didn’t want to. She’d gone with Oliver a few times, but her excitement waned after each trip.

Why was she like this? Watching Oliver debate over the perfect tomatoes or roast of coffee was amazing, truly. He’d fought so many battles, first just to survive, then to save the city. He was worthy of a soft life, finding hobbies he loved, spoiling her with amazing food, and flexing his muscles whenever he caught her watching _American Ninja Warrior_.

But Felicity _didn’t want it_.

She wanted her life to mean something. She’d gotten a taste of it for the past three years, and she didn’t want to let go. Everything she’d done in college, that super virus, letting Cooper take the fall, had changed her. Once she got past her fear, she searched for atonement. And she found it in the basement of a nightclub with a billionaire and his bodyguard.

Speaking of…

“Take a right. You’re clear till the second door on the left. Four heat signatures in the room,” she said into the headset speaker. Her laptop was open on the kitchen counter so she could give direction while she paced. Normally, she was much more collected when the team went out. But normally, they had Oliver with them and she was at least in the same city.

Another reason she didn’t go to the farmers market. The team sent her an SOS text right before Oliver left.

“ _You’re a lifesaver_ ,” Thea murmured through the comms.

“Technically, that’s your jobs,” she quipped with a smile. A deep sense of satisfaction warmed her with Thea and Digg managed to take down the amateur cocaine ring without anyone getting hurt or escaping.

 _This_ was why she got up in the morning. She loved Oliver with all her heart, but saving Starling City gave meaning to her life.

“ _Team Arrow signing off_ ,” Digg said. The team was on their way back to the lair now, Digg driving the van. “ _I’ll call you later, Felicity_.”

“Oliver would love to hear from you, too,” Felicity said hopefully, but wasn’t too sad when Digg just sighed. There was a rift between the two men, and only time would heal it.

“ _I’m not ready for that. But you’ll be the first to know when I am_.”

That was all she could ask for.

Everyone signed off and Felicity went back to actually working on PT stuff. It wouldn’t do for Oliver to come home and find her with no work done.

Forty-five minutes later, the familiar jangle of keys in the door startled her from her reverie and Felicity couldn’t help but smile.

Oliver was back.

“I’m back, hon!” he called, punctuated by the front door closing again. She heard the click of two deadbolts turning into place. They may be safe in the suburbs, but some habits never changed.

And honestly, Felicity’s eyes had almost popped out of her head when she found out her neighbors spent all day with their doors unlocked. If she and Donna had done that in Vegas, they would’ve been robbed too many times to count. So, maybe it wasn’t just a leftover habit from his time away.

“How was it?” Felicity asked, meeting her boyfriend in the kitchen. He was wearing cargo shorts and a tight blue t-shirt. His bulging arms were full of paper bags. She took several moments to appreciate the view.

Oliver didn’t say anything, and when she finally looked up he was smirking. “See something you like?” he asked, flexing his muscles as he put the bags on the kitchen island.

“Hmm.” Felicity slid closer, pressing against his side. “Maybe.”

Normally, Oliver would raise to Felicity’s prompting. In their months before they settled into Ivy Town, they couldn’t get enough of each other. And that was still the case. Though they had settled into more of a usual routine, they still found plenty of time for each other.

This time, though, Oliver just kept unpacking the produce and organizing it into piles based on where in the fridge they belonged.

Felicity couldn’t believe it.

“I’ve been sidelined by… Oliver, is that kale?”

He chuckled at her tone and finally turned to face her. His hands landed on her shoulders, then slid down her arms to hold her hands. Warm, blue eyes melted her and his smile was like the sun coming out. Those kinds of smiles had only come once they left Starling.

This was why she hadn’t said anything about how she felt here. Oliver deserved this time.

They met halfway and kissed, his lips wrapping so perfectly around hers. Like they’d been born fused.

But she was definitely going to bring it up soon. He deserved happiness, but so did she.

**Author's Note:**

> Everyone's happiness is important. I don't believe that Oliver deserves to be happy more than Felicity, which is why I decided to end this piece where I did. Felicity recognizes that she can't be totally happy in her life if there's a huge, unfulfilled hole inside her. Oliver makes her happy, and she loves him. But she's not content being a remote CEO in a suburb, and she shouldn't have to be. Felicity deserved the life she wanted, too. Compromise is part of any relationship, but I don't believe that's what Oliver and Felicity had in Ivy Town.
> 
> If you enjoyed, please drop me a comment and kudo! I love hearing from you guys.
> 
> Tumblr: [@imusuallyobsessed](https://imusuallyobsessed.tumblr.com/)  
> Twitter: [@usuallyobsessed](https://twitter.com/usuallyobsessed)


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